


First Words by Dragon's fire

by Hale_1517



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Charlie Weasley - Freeform, Draco Malfoy - Freeform, First Meetings, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:15:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26383990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hale_1517/pseuds/Hale_1517
Summary: Draco had been waiting for years to hear the warning that was sprawled across his wrist. He never thought that the man who was meant to say it would be a Weasley.Soulmate AU The first words that your soulmate says to you are printed on your forearm.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Charlie Weasley
Comments: 5
Kudos: 343





	First Words by Dragon's fire

“She’ll bite your arm off, you keep dangling it over the edge like that.” 

Draco knew the words by heart, he would regularly fill the edges of parchment in the quick scrawl that was so different from his elegant penmanship. Draco could remember learning to read as a young child and becoming obsessed with the warning that had graced the inside of his forearm. Blaise, who had a simple “oh, excuse me” is fairly basic blocky writing resting on his arm, always joked that of course Draco’s soulmate would have to be scolding Draco. Blaise was lucky though, Draco wished that he also could have something so common and so easily expressed. If that were the case then at 14 he wouldn’t still be waiting to hear his soulmate’s first words to him. Before he had started attending Hogwarts,Draco’s tutor would regularly take him to various zoos throughout the Wizarding World. It had become a habit for him to drape his arms over the edges of the exhibits’ barriers, dangling them over the edge. At each exhibit he would wait to see if anyone would berate him for dangerously hanging his arms toward the creatures but it had never come. 

“I’m not getting anything done.” Draco sighed, looking down at his graffitied parchment. “I am going for a walk.”

“Curfew is soon,” Blaise responded without looking up from the tomb that he had been working through. “Don’t get caught.” Draco scoffed as he slid on his shoes and made his way out of the castle. Draco commonly wondered the grounds after curfew, he had gotten quite proficient at avoiding the patrolling teachers and prefects. 

Sometimes it all became too much. The constant pressures of perfection from his father. The need to appease his mother’s every request of writing to her more. To top it all off with the Triwizard Tournament his father was pushing more then usual to form connections with the visiting wizarding schools.So much for “Tri” wizard, as Saint Potter was once again held above the rest of the populace. 

Draco neared the Forbidden Forest and suddenly caught an unusual sound, Since his first visit to the forest,a detention in his first year, Draco had become quite familiar with the sounds that often drifted through the tightly packed trees. This sound, this sound was new though. It was a loud and deep roar that seemed to shake the ground and spread all the way from the soles of Draco’s feet to the tips of his fingers. Draco, intrigued by what new creature was making their presence known, made his way through the dense foliage and came out into a large clearing that Darco was sure used to be empty. Four large enclosures seemed to be being pitched as large crates with streams of fire shooting out of them were guided into the magically reinforced areas. 

Dragons, Draco concluded. The first task must be something to do with dragons. While three of the four dragons seemed to eventually relent and work their ways into their temporary homes, there was one who seemed quite keen on continuing to throw a fit. A Hungarian Horntail, if Draco wasn’t mistaken. Trying to get close to the Horntail while the dragon was blasting fire toward the handlers around them was likely to get Draco spotted. The Sweedish Shortsnout already curling around themselves in their enclosure was a much more logical option. Draco crept his way over to the enclosure, making sure to not be seen by the tamers that were checking over the completed enclosures before making their way to surround a fire set in the center of the clearing. Draco leaned against the barrier surrounding the Shortsnout’s enclosure, pressing most of his weight against the barrier while hanging his arms over the edge. The enclosures seemed to be deep wipe holes in the ground with a wooden barrier surrounding them, Draco assumed that they were charmed for the human handlers to be able to reach over the barrier to feed the dragons but the dragons themselves couldn’t escape. 

Draco had always had a small obsession with dragons. When he was around four his mother followed in the Black family tradition of teaching Draco all of the constellations in the night sky and explaining the stories behind them. Most of his ancestors on his mother’s side had names that came from the stars. When Draco learned that his name derived from the Draconis constellation, the dragon, he became fascinated with the magical creatures. His parents supported his fascination as much as they felt was appropriate for a young boy. Growing up he had a small horde of plush dragons that would waddle around his playroom and slowly flap their stuffed wings. As he grew up his parents started gifting him extravagant glass dragons that would fly around his desk and curl up on his fireplace mantle. No matter how much he begged, pleaded and bargened his parents never took him to a reserve to see real dragons though. Between his father’s disfavor of the outdoors and his mother’s fear that he would get injured just being in the vicinity of dragons, he was never allowed to go. If his parents knew where he was now, they would be furious. Not only out after curfew, wondering the Forbidden Forest, but also standing in front of a massive sleeping dragon. He was sure they would ground him worse then he had ever been before.

“She’ll bite your arm off, you keep dangling it over the edge like that.” Draco froze as an arm wrapped around his waist and he was dragged against a firm, broad chest. Draco’s ears rang and his skin tingled. 

“Get your hands off of me, you absolute wanker.” Draco spat out as he tugged out of the man’s unfairly strong arms. 

“What did you just say?” The man looked Draco up and down as Draco spun around to look at him. He took in the shaggy red hair and the freckles strewn across his nose. He looked familiar, too familiar. He looked similarly enough to Ronald Weasly and the twins who commonly made most of the Slytherins uneasy that he must be one of the elder brothers that had already finished at Hogwarts. 

“No.” Draco said folding his arms across his chest. “I cannot have a Weasly for a soulmate.” 

“Please,” Charlie scoffed and stood tall over Draco, “You think that I am pleased? Most people I know have already long since found their soulmates. I finally find mine and he is a snot nosed, little spoiled brat?”

“How dare you!” Draco resisted the urge to stomp his foot. “I am Draco Malfoy. You should feel honored that Magic herself decided you were good enough to be paired with me.” 

“Oh I am supposed to feel honored? You’re what, 12?” Charlie chuckled at the younger boy. “Let’s get you back to the castle, it’s past your bedtime.” 

“Excuse you, I will have you know that I am 14. Also, I don’t know who you think you are, soulmate or not, you are not in charge of me.” 

“I’m Charlie Weasley, Head Dragon Handler at the Buzău Mountains Dragon Reserve. I am in charge of these dragons and their safety. From what I’ve heard of you, this girl bites you and you go crying to daddy until the next thing I know she is being harvested for potions ingredients. So for their safety, you can go.” Charlie grabbed Draco by the shoulder and started leading back out of the trees. Draco huffed but walked next to Charlie. He looked up at the broad man and he could admit that he wasn’t bad looking. Charlie had a strong, chilled jaw line and relatively nice blue eyes. His chest was broad and muscular and trailed down to a nice tapered waist. Charlie was a pureblood too so it’s not like his parents could be too displeased. 

“You know for a Weasley you are quite attractive. At least more so than your brothers, particularly Ronald. He looks like a baby troll.” Draco stopped walking and leaned against a tree, just inside the forest but with the castle visible from where they stood. 

“I don’t think insulting my family is going to make me like you.” Charlie crosses his arms over his chest and followed Draco’s lead, leaning against the tree across from him. At least he hadn’t left.

“You don’t have to like me. We are soulmates regardless.” Draco tried to sound calm and collected but he could feel dread slowly filling in his stomach. Not good enough for his father’s approval. Never the top of his class no matter how hard he studies. Can’t beat Potter in Quidditch regardless of how hard he trains.not good enough, never good enough. Draco could feel the anxiety rising and his breath become labored. 

“Hey,” Charlie’s voice sounded like Draco was underwater and his hand felt like fire against his shoulder. “Hey, you’re okay. We haven’t made any decisions. I’m still right here.” Draco looked up at Charlie and saw his face soften and eyes full of worry. 

“We are soulmates. We are destined to be together.” Draco felt small under Charlie’s gaze. 

“Draco, you’re only 14. I’m 21. You still have time to be a child, take it. When you’re older we can talk about what we want but for now, enjoy your time in school.” 

“What?” Draco stepped away from Charlie. “You want to just go on as if we never met? Eventually we can meet again if we want to?” Draco started biting at his bottom lip and looked away from Charlie. “I’m sure you have someone else.” Someone better. Draco thought. 

“That’s not what I am saying. I am saying we both continue on living our lives until you are old enough to actually decide that this is what you want. I am a Dragon Handler, Draco. I don't exactly live in luxury, I have a small cabin in the woods. It’s hard, dangerous work but I love it and I don’t exactly plan on leaving anytime soon. Your entire life screams weath, Draco. Right now you can’t say that when you come of age you’ll want to come out to Romania or even be comfortable with how dangerous my job can be. Judging by your face right now, I am right by saying that you wouldn’t.” Charlie chuckled, “I’m not saying no this isn’t going to happen, I’m saying no to right now. Give us sometime to get to know one another as more than just a Malfoy and a Weasley. We can write to each other.”

“Tell me about dragons?” Draco asked softly.

“You want me to write you lectures on dragons?” Charlie asked laughing lightly. 

“No,” Draco shook his head, “I want you to tell me about dragons. You work with them everyday. You know more about them then the two pages that Newt Scamander gives them in Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them. I want to know why you work with them and how you see them.” 

“Alright,” Charlie reached forward and ruffled Draco’s hair, earning him an exclamation of displeasure. “I will tell you about dragons and we will get to know each other. For now though, go back to your dungeons little dragon.”

4 Years Later 

Draco leaned against the barrier surrounding the newly hatched dragons. Their blue scales reflecting red from the flame of the lanterns on the walls. They had been waiting all day for the hatchlings to work their way through their hardened egg shells. Finally all hatchlings were free of their confins and were cleared as healthy. Draco glanced at the sleeping mother, the same Sweedish Shortsnout he had seen four years before. 

“She’ll bite your arm off, you keep dangling it over the edge like that.” A warm, familiar arm circled around Draco's waist. Draco chuckled and leaned his head back against his soulmates’ shoulder. 

“Get your hands off of me, you absolute wanker.” Draco intertwined his long fingers with Charlie’s rough callused ones. 

“Oh, hush Little Dragon you know you wouldn’t rather be anywhere else.”


End file.
